Leading Off

TIPS, TRENDS & NEWS YOU CAN USE

DECEMBER 15, 1950 - NOV. 10, 2013

Paul E. Berman, Sports Vision Pioneer

Optometrist Paul E. Berman, 62, died unexpectedly Nov. 10, 2013. He was a sports vision specialist who practiced privately in Hackensack, N.J., for almost 40 years and was founder and Global Clinical director of the Special Olympics-Lions Club International Opening Eyes, a program that seeks to improve the quality of life of Special Olympic athletes through eye care.

Dr. Berman assisting an athlete in Germany.

“When we volunteer to provide sight to those who are intellectually challenged and universally neglected, we are immediately reminded of the beauty in optometry and in the human spirit,” Dr. Berman wrote in the “Reflections” column of OM’s March 2007 issue.

Dr. Berman received the Special Olympics’ Spirit Award - for Special Lifetime Global Leadership in Promoting Human Dignity in 2007, the Lion’s Club International Presidential Award and the Ambassador of Good Will Award in 2009, and he was recognized at the White House as a “Champion of Change” in 2012 for his work.

“The World of Special Olympics” blog posted, “The lives he touched were never the same afterwards, and the gift of sight that he brought to so many athletes was so awe-inspiring, that many have followed in his footsteps and worked to help our athletes have greater vision and better lives.”

■ Tailor motivation to the employee’s personality type to achieve success. For example, if you’re dealing with a “social” individual, reward them with a gesture from the heart, such as a handwri en note of thanks.

— Geil Browning, www.inc.com

■ To be a better leader in 2014, communicate honestly, boldly and more frequently with staff.

— Jacquelyn Smith, www.forbes.com, Dec. 16

■ One way you can have a super productive morning is to avoid opening e-mail until noon. No one is going to e-mail you an emergency, so your inbox can wait for the first few hours.

— James Clear, www.entrepreneur.com

■ Analyzing more than 30 years of state-level economic data, researchers conclude a one-gallon increase in per capita beer consumption is associated with a 0.48 percentage point lower per capita personal income growth.

— Resul Cesar and Inas Rashad Kelly, Economic Inquiry, Jan. 2014

OBSOLETE ANTIBIOTICS PLAY ROLE

CA-MRSA “Tricked” Into Being Less Deadly, Study Shows

Treating community-associated (CA)-MRSA with an antibiotic to which they are already resistant makes CA-MRSA less toxic and, thus, decreases the probability it will cause severe disease, says December’s Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy. By employing obsolete antibiotics and antibiotics that can eradicate the bacteria, the CA-MRSA is tricked into expressing high levels of resistant genes, while simultaneously decreasing the infection’s severity.

“We grow clinically important bacterial strains of MRSA and then expose them to antibiotics. We then measure their ability to destroy human tissue and cells,” explains Ruth Massey, Ph.D., one of the study’s researchers. “We see that important toxins, which cause damage and disease, are secreted at a much lower level and so cause less human tissue destruction when exposed to the antibiotic, even though the antibiotic doesn’t actually kill them.”

AAO Releases Binocular Vision Disorders Position Paper

STUDENTS STRUGGLE NEEDLESSLY

■ Recent studies that reveal accommodation and vergence problems are common in students have prompted the American Academy of Optometry’s Binocular Vision, Perception, and Pediatric Optometry section to release the position paper Optometric Care of the Struggling Student: For Parents, Educators, and Other Professionals.

“. . . There are students who struggle needlessly with correctable vision problems that go either unidentified or uncorrected,” explains Leonard Press, O.D., F.C.O.V.D., F.A.A.O., of the Binocular Vision, Perception and Pediatric Optometry Section, in an AAO press release. Also, the paper says timely identification and treatment can eliminate a “potential obstacle that may restrict a child from performing at his or her full potential.”

See the paper at http://bit.ly/17uoVCw.

RESEARCH Notes

● Randomized trial data from a large cohort of middle-aged and older U.S. male doctors shows that long-term daily multivitamin use reduces the risk of cataract, says the November 21 online version of Ophthalmology.

● A retrospective, cohort study of individuals aged 60+ years who underwent bilateral cataract surgery reveals an increased risk of injurious falls requiring hospitalization occurred after the first- and second-eye surgeries, says November’s Age and Ageing.

● Sjögren syndrome(SS)-associated aqueous-deficient dry eye is linked with a major upregulation of conjunctival epithelial tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α mRNA relative to both non-SS dry eye and control groups, says December’s Optometry & Vision Science. The amount of TNF-α mRNA upregulated in SS may play a role in the severe ocular surface damage.

Professional Eye Care Associates of America (PECAA.com) held its Business Symposium recently at the Camelback Inn Resort & Spa in Scottsdale, Ariz. The Symposium covered introducing new products for existing patients, growth opportunities through capturing new patients and controlling costs.

Optometric Management is dedicated to helping optometrists improve their practice through relevant, actionable and practical columns and features that enhance patient outcomes and bolster the bottom line. Optometric Management is the leading how-to guide for optometrists interested in growing their practice, improving their standard of care, and achieving financial and professional success.